Refrigerator latch



@et 4, i932. A. EKMAN L88028 REFRIGERATOR LATCH Filed Jan. 13, 19.30 2Sheets-Sheet l Oflvw.

Oct- 4, 1932. A. EKMAN www REFRIGERATOR LATCH I Filed Jan. 13, 1930 2SheetsfSheet 2 lll O Gili OY @Roz nu @L refrigerator hinges.

Patented oct. 4, 1932 UNITED STATES PATENT' OFFICEA ANDREW EKMAN, OFGRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN, A'SSIGNQR T0 WINTERS & CRAMPION MFG. CO., OFGRANDVILLE, MICHIGAN, A CORPORATION 0F MICHIGAN REFRIGERATOR LATCHApplication led January 13, 1930. Serial No. 420,387.

This invention relates to latches, and more particularly to latcheswhich are to be applied to swinging doors such as those u sed onrefrigerators, kitchen cabinets or the like.

In opening and closing refrigerator doors it isdesirable that the latchused may be easily operated for opening the same and that the latchshall be held in a position such that when the door is closed it doesnot have to ride over any cam surface with an overcoming of the springaction of the latch, but that it may move freely over the keeper andafter it has passed by the keeper hook, be tripped so as to snuglyengage with the keeper hook and thereby hold the door in tightly closedposition. The strength of spring properly required for maintaining arelatively heavy refrigerator door in tightly closed position so as topreclude the escape of refrigerated air from the refrigerator is greatand as normally an overcoming of the spring is required every time thedoor is closed, there is a very strong tendency that parts of the latchand keeper may be damaged, especially as the door is many times slammedwith heavy force; and the fastenings which secure the latch to the doormay become loosened and in addition a heavy strain is put upon the Byeliminating any necessity to overcome the spring when the door is closedall of such detrimental tendencies are overcome and there is no damageto the latch parts, their fastenings or to the door hinges.

It is a primary object and purpose of the present invention to provide avery economically manufactured refrigerator latch and have an effectivetrip operation thereof when the door is closedto permit sure and easyclosing of the door. The present invention is concerned with much thesame character and t e of latch as that shown in my Patent No. 1,78,148, issued October 14, 1980. understanding of the invention and itsvarious advantages in the matter of operation and economy of manufacturemay be had from the followingdescription,taken in connection with theaccompanying drawings, in which,

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of the latch and keeper attached to a doorand door j amb,

which are shown fragmentarily, the outer side of the latch housing beingremoved and the housing shown lin section.

Fig. 2 is an inner side elevation of the latch which is applied to thedoor.

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the latch and keeper applied,respectively, to the door and door jamb, the door being .in closedposition.

Fig. 4 is a view similar to that shown in Fig. 3, the door being partlyopened and shown approaching closed position.

Fig. 5 is a central vertical section through the latch which is to beattached to a door and with the latch occupying the position which ithas when the door-is opened, and

Fig. Gis a similar section with the latch parts in the position theyoccupy when the door is closed.

Like reference characters refer to like parts in the different figuresof the drawings.

On a door, indicated at 1, and on a door jamb shown at 2, the latch andthe keeper therefor, respectively, are mounted. The latch is locatednear the free vertical edge of the door which is mounted for swingingmovement on hinges. The keeper comprises a fiat base plate 3 attached byscrews to the door jamb 2 from which a` keeper hook 4 eX- tendsoutwardly. The hook at its outer side has a curved cam face 5. Avertical tripping ledge 6 extends laterally from the hook towardthe dooras best shown in Fig. 1.

The latch mechanism which is to be secured to the door 1 includes astamped housing 7, preferably, from which attaching ears 8 integraltherewith extend upwardly and downwardly. Screws may pass through theseears tosecure the housing and the mechanism carried thereby to the door.

A latch bolt 9 in the form of a rod is mounted for rocking movement onand between the vertical sides of the housing 7; and to make bearingsfor the bolt the metal of the sides of the housing is pressed inwardly,as indicated at 10, providing wider bearings for the bolt than the merethickness of the metal used in the housing would afford.

One end of the bolt at the side of the housing adjacent the keeper has abell crank head permanently secured thereto (see Fig. 4). One arm 11 ofthe bell crank is equipped with a laterally extending roller 12 at itsfree end, and the other arm 13 extends at right angles substantiallyfrom the arm 11 so as -to engage against the tripping ledge 6 whenextends through the inner side of the housing 7 to and through twospaced apart ears 18 which extend outwardly at right angles from a plate19. located within and at the inner part of the housing 7. One end ofthe plate 19 is turned outwardly and then downwardly providing a lip 20which extends into the opening 14 in the latch housing. Two sides 21 arebent at right angles from the base 19 and extend outwardly` parallel toand closely adjacent the inner sides of the sides 7 of the latchhousing, and the latch bolt 9 passes through said sides 21. These sides21 terminate in upper extremities 22 spaced a distance from the outerside of the housing 7 to serve to hold a; tubular member 23 in place atthe upper outer portion of the housing as fully shown in Figs. 5 and 6.

The tubular member 23 serves as a support for spaced apart coils 24 of acoiled spring the free ends of the coil being extended, as

indicatedat 25, to bear against the inner side of the upper end of thehousing 7. The spring is made from a single length of spring wire and anintermediate loop 26 between the coils 24 extends inwardly and upwardlytherefrom and seats in suitable notches at the upper ends of the sidesof a channel shaped arm or link 27 the lower end of which is engagedwith the hooked end 29 of a metal band 28 located around and permanentlysecured to the latch bolt 9 substantially midwa between its ends.

wo spaced apart teeth 30 project from the member 28 and are adapted toengage in the openin 16 in the upper end of the handle 15, sim1lar inaction to gear teeth and a rack. A stop lug 31 is bent in an outwarddirection from the upper end of the plate 19 and is in the path ofmovement of the hooked end 29 of the member 28 as illustrated in Fig. 6.

In the operation of the latch structure as described, withthe doorclosed, as shown in Fig. 3, the drop handle 15 is grasped and swungoutwardly. The link 27 and the mem.

ber 28 with which it engages having been in the position shown in Fig. 6when the handle 15 is swung outwardly to the position shown in Fig. 5,the bolt 9 is turned about its longitudinal axis, lifting the roller 12out of the recess of the keeper hook and above the nose of the hook. Thestructure described with reference to the link 27, bolt 9 and the member28 around it is in eect a to gle arm structure. In the movement of theparts from the position shown in Fig. 6 to that shown in Fig. 5 the lineof force of the springwith which the upper end of the link 27 is engagedis carried across from one side to the other of the dead center line ofthe toggle construction whereby the spring maintains the latch parts ineither position to which operated, namely, that shown in Fig. 5 or thatshown in Fig. 6. Accordingly, when the handle 15 is grasped and pulledoutwardly the roller 12,

carried on the arm 11, which has been seated in the recess of the keeperhook is disengaged from the keeper and remains in its upper position allof the time that the door is open.

On closing the door the end of the arm 13 comes against the trip ledge 6and automatically rotates the latch bolt so as to cause the roller 12 tobe forced into the recess back of the hook of the keeper, the toggleconstruction described being automatically moved from the position shownin Fig. 4 to that shown in Fig. 6. The roller 12, when the door is beingclosed, moves freely over the nose of the keeper hook without engagingtherewithv in any respect, and the tripping action effects a movement ofthe roller 12 downwardly into the recess of the kee er hook, the rollerengaging with the inner slde of the hook and wedging the door to tightlyclosed position.

Attached to the lower ear 8 of the latch housing is an eye 32 which,when the door is in closed position, with the handle 15 at its inwardlocation il: is directly over said eye permitting the handle to beembraced by the bolt of a padlock thereby serving to hold the handle aainst outward movement; and therefore loc s the latch against operationwith the lock bolt engaged with the keeper.

The construction described is one of a very economical manufacture. Itis durable and eiicient in all respects and has proved exceptionallypractical in service. The invention is defined in the appended claimsand is to be considered comprehensive of all forms of structure comingwithin their teeth are received on pivotal movement of the handlethereby rocking ,the rock shaft, said band at one end being formed intoa curved section projecting away from the rock shaft, a link seated atone end in the socket made by said curved portion of the band, andspring means bearing against the opposite end of the link and with whichsaid opposite end of thelink has a pivotal connection, substantially asand for the purposes described.

2. A construction containing the elements in combination defined inclaim l, combined with a fixed stop interposed in the path of movementof said projecting end of the band mounted on the housing, interengagingmeans on the handle and rock shaft for rocking the shaft on movement ofthe handle, spring actuated means cooperatively associated with saidrock shaft for maintaining it in eitherv on the rock shaft to limit therocking movement of said shaft in one direction.

3. A latch structure comprising a housing, a rock shaft mounted thereinhaving keeper engaging means secured thereto at one end, a handlepivotally mounted with respect to the housing, interengaging meansbetween the handle and rock shaft for rocking the shaft by said handle,a cylindrical support held within said housing a distance from said rockshaft, spring means comprising a central U-shaped loop, coils formed inthe legs of said loop located around said support and having free endsbearing against the housing, and a link interposed between said loop ofthe spring means and the rock shaft, said link at one end having pivotalconnection with said loop and at the opposite end having a pivotalconnection with the rock shaft, for the purposes described.

' 4. A latch structure comprising, a housing, a rock shaft mountedtherein, keeper engaging means at one end of the rock shaft, a platelocated within and at the inner part of the housing having outwardlyturned sides lying Within the sides of the housing through which saidrock shaft passes, and also having outwardly turned ears a shortdistance from said sides turned from the plate, a handle located betweenand pivotally carried on said ears, operative means connecting thehandle and rock shaft for rocking said shaft by movement of the handle,said sides turned outwardly from the plate having portions out awaytherefrom a distance from the rock shaft forming recesses, a cylindricalsupporting member held in said housing between the outer side thereofand the said sides of the plate in said recesses, spring meanscomprising a U-shaped loop with the legs thereof formed into springcoils, said coils being located around said support and terminating infree ends bearing against the housing, and a link having one en dpivotally engaging against said U-shaped loop and the other endpivotally connected with said rock shaft.

5. In a device of the character described, a housing, a shaft mountedtherein for rocking movement, said shaft at one end having a crankportion and an arm extending at an angle to said crank portion, a handlemovably

